MANILA — Since the Barangay (village) and Sangguniang Kabataan (youth council) elections are over in most part of the country, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is looking at the possibility of holding polls in war-torn Marawi City.
Comelec Commissioner Luie Guia said that an assessment will be conducted in the city to see if they can hold elections there at a later date.
“There are reasons why we did not push through with the elections in Marawi. And if all those reasons are now gone, then we will schedule the elections already,” he said in a press briefing Tuesday evening.
Guia added that they will be making the evaluation within three months.
“We are a working on the three-month timeline. We will continue to assess the situation in Marawi,” the poll body official said.
On the other hand, Comelec acting chairman Al Parreño noted the assessment will be similar to what they did earlier in evaluating whether or not to push through with the elections in Mindanao, which is under Martial Law.
“We will be using a similar process in coming up with that decision in Mindanao, wherein the commissioners went to different parts of Mindanao, hold hearings and consultations,” he said.
Last January, the poll body issued Minute Resolution No. 18-0085, which approved the conduct of elections in Mindanao except for Marawi City, which is undergoing rehabilitation.
It also ordered the conduct of a physical/ocular/structural integrity study or assessment of the polling precincts in Marawi City and recommend whether or not to conduct elections three months after the scheduled May 14 barangay and youth polls.
Last year, Marawi City became a battleground between government forces and the Maute terror group which lasted for five months. (PNA)
